I love character quirks.

In one of my early stories one of the characters was a one legged prostitute named Reverend Moon (it’s still in the short story section of the site if you want to read it). I’ve levered in other strange tics, everything from an obsession with numbers to a predilection for Greek literature.

It’s taken me until my current project to realise I might have been overdoing it a little.

Bizarre quirks can work, but it’s like salt. A little improves a dish, a lot makes you gag. I’ve tired to infuse my current protagonist with some more ordinary quirks. He loves cheeseburgers, especially cold ones from Big Gary’s Chip Shop (named after a burger bar I used to go to long ago). He stashes grab bags around town, because he’s in a dangerous line of work and some times needs to get out of dodge quickly.

The first quirk, cheeseburgers, doesn’t need an in story explanation. Lots of  people like cheeseburgers. That the main character likes them cold is a little odd, but not odd enough to warrant any kind of explanation.

The second quirk, the grab bags full of clothes and the odd fake ID, needs a little more in the way of set up. Without knowing that my main character frequently finds himself in peril, readers could easily come to the conclusion that he’s paranoid. Which he is, but with good reason.

The lesson here, and I wish I’d learned it before now, is that big quirks and ticks need to have a context within the story, or it looks like you’ve put them in just for the sake of having them. Smaller, more human and every day things can be sprinkled in just for interests sake.

In other news I drew Riznphnx’s name out of the hat to win January’s prize for helping out Tee Morris and Sonic Boom. I’m keeping the competition going for another two months, so if you’ve already donated, you’re already in the next two draws. If you’ve donated, just tell me and I’ll add your name to the list.

If you haven’t donated, the ChipIn widget is just to the right of this post. It’s very easy to help out in the initial rush of a tragedy. It’s harder to keep helping as time passes. I haven’t always been good at it myself, but Tee has done so much for our community I’d like to see some more donations rolling in. As with last month, if you donate and tell me you go in the draw to win one of Tee’s books from Book Depository

Tags: advice, Community, Tee Morris, writing